Robert Hamilton (Scottish footballer)
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert Cumming Hamilton | ||
| Date of birth | 13 May 1877 | ||
| Place of birth | Elgin, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 1948 (aged 70–71) | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Elgin City | |||
| 1896–1897 | Queen's Park | ||
| 1897–1906 | Rangers | 164 | (154) |
| 1906–1907 | Fulham | 29 | (11) |
| 1907–1908 | Rangers | 11 | (3) |
| 1908–1909 | Morton | ||
| 1909–1910 | Heart of Midlothian | ||
| 1910–1913 | Dundee | ||
| Elgin City | |||
| National team | |||
| 1899–1911 | Scotland | 11 | (15) |
| 1898–1904 | Scottish League XI | 7 | (9) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. | |||
Robert Cumming Hamilton (13 May 1877 – 1948) was a Scottish international footballer, most notable for his ten season association with Rangers.
Playing career
Club
Hamilton started his footballing career with local side Elgin City, in the Highland League. He moved to Queen's Park in 1896, when he relocated to Glasgow to attend the University of Glasgow.[1] A year later he joined Rangers, where he remained until 1907, earning a reputation as a potent goal-scorer, particularly accurate from long range.[1]
Hamilton became Rangers all-time top scorer against rivals Celtic during his time at Ibrox, and was the club's top goalscorer for nine consecutive seasons. He was top scorer, played every match and captained the team during the 1898–99 season, in which they won every match. He earned further League winners medals in 1899-00, 1900–01 and 1901–02 and was part of Rangers' Scottish Cup winning sides in 1898 and 1903.
Hamilton moved south of the border to join Fulham in May 1906, helping them to win the 1906–07 Southern League title,[1] before returning to Rangers a year later. He left the Glasgow club for a second time in 1908, briefly moving to Morton before joining Hearts. He joined Dundee during the 1909–10 season but was not part of the side which defeated Clyde to win the Scottish Cup, Dundee's first, that year.[1] He returned to first club Elgin City in 1913, where he finally retired.
International
Hamilton won a total of 11 caps for Scotland between 1899 and 1911, scoring 15 goals, 4 of which came in Scotland's 11–0 win over Ireland in 1901, their biggest ever margin of victory. He was also selected seven times for the Scottish League representative side.[1]
Post football
After retiring from football he went into education and after graduating from the University of Glasgow, Hamilton became a school teacher then eventually master. He maintained an involvement in education throughout his life and eventually served upon the Moray and Nairn Education Board in the mid-1930s.[1] He was also involved in local politics, serving in the Elgin Town council between 1914 and 1937. For the last six years of this period he held the position of Town Provost.[1] Hamilton died in May 1948, aged 71. In the late 1950s/early 1960s he had a new road in a private housing estate at the north side of Elgin, overlooking the River Lossie, named after him, as Hamilton Drive, which still remains to-day.
